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TPD officer explains laser gun citations

A picture of a Toledo police officer appearing to stand on an overpass looking for speeder was trending on social media in the Toledo-area. That led many to question the officer's intentions.
(Source: WTOL)

TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - A picture of a Toledo police officer appearing to stand on an overpass looking for speeder was trending on social media in the Toledo-area. That led many to question the officer's intentions.

Toledo police has eight hand-held laser guns.

Police say they do not have a quota and they're not trying to hide from motorists. Instead, they hope to keep drivers safe.

"We want people to know we are out here on a daily basis," said Lt. Jeff Sulewski of Toledo police. "The idea isn't to issue more tickets. It's to get people to think about their driving and slow down a little bit."

Of the 12 fatal crashes in Toledo this year, police blame five on speeding.

Traffic officers say they concentrate on roadways with the most complaints or where they know speeding can get out of hand.

According to Lt. Sulewski, one of the worst stretches is I-475 near ProMedica. It is one of the typical spots officers station themselves to catch speeders.

When asked about the picture of the officer standing on the overpass, Lt. Sulewski said, "In this case here, what we are demonstrating today, the officer is separate from his car, but he is standing in a safe location. He is highly visible; his police car is visible."

Speeders are not clocked until after they passed the officer and only if they exceed 11 miles per hour over the speed limit.

Lt. Sulewski says if motorists are truly paying attention, they have plenty of time to hit the breaks before getting caught.

Traffic officers are also not out for their entire eight-hour shift. Rather, the officer will spend about one or two hours issuing laser gun citations.

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